Alex Lacey in circus photo of the month

What a great picture of Alex Lacey, the British star of America's Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus enjoying a cuddle with Mogli the leopard.

Read the story of Alex's tiger-trainer father Martin Lacey and go backstage at his Great British Circus to learn how big cats are trained in Circus Mania - The Ultimate Book For Anyone Who Dreamed of Running Away With the Circus.

"Circus Mania is a brilliant account of a vanishing art form."
- Mail on Sunday

Brian Conley is PT Barnum

Catch Brian Conley on tour in the musical Barnum. Check your local theatre for dates.

I'll always remember a great piece of improvisation from Conley when I saw him in Elton John's Sunglasses many years ago. As he came on stage, the door fell off. He calmly straightened the failed piece of scenery without comment. Then, as he left the stage at the end of his scene ad-libbed, "And get that door fixed!"

The audience rolled up.

For the true story of PT Barnum and other circus legends from Grimaldi to Leotard and their counterparts today, read Circus Mania - The Ultimate Book For Anyone Who Dreamed of Running Away with the Circus.

The Posters of Bertram Mills

My feature on The Posters
of Bertram Mills in
The Stage

The poster has always been the primary means of publicising a circus. Billed as the Quality Show and the show that put the 'O' in Olympia,  Bertram Mills was Britain's biggest and most famous circus in the first half of the 20th century and produced the finest artwork. Steven B Richley has gathered more than 350 examples of their designs in a new book, The Posters of Bertram Mills. Read my article on the book, the posters, the artists and the acts exclusively in this week's edition of The Stage.

For more circus art, click here.

These stilts were made for walking

Just came across this illustration of stilt-walking, not as a circus trick, but for navigating swampy terrain. That third stilt looks like an uncomfortable way to take a rest! Or was it a literal manifestation of that old reposte to a demanding taskmaster: "Would you like me to stick a broom up my **** and clean the floor while I'm at it?"

Not my circus, not my monkeys

Did you know that's a Polish expression for "Not my problem!"

Circus Street

Is it so surprising that the late Chris Christian ran away to join the circus, became a famed ringmaster for Billy Smarts Circus, appeared as the ringmaster in 1960s film Circus of Horrors, and created his own circus family, with Circus Tyanna named after his granddaughter (see post below) when he was born in the prophetically named Circus Street, Greenwich?

Circus Tyanna - The Perfect Circus for a Village Green!

Roll up, roll up... to Circus Tyanna!

I couldn't resist sharing this fantastically atmospheric picture of the Circus Tyanna big top, from their Facebook page. Could there be a more tempting sight to grace a village green on a pleasant evening?

The 2015 Circus Tyanna poster
Look out for it in a town near you
when their new season starts

Circus Tyanna is named after the granddaughter of former Billy Smarts ringmaster, the late Chris Christian, who was immortalised as ringmaster in the 1960 Donald Pleasance film, Circus of Horrors.

Chris' son Todd and his wife Claire founded Circus Tyanna in 2009 to mark their daughter Tyanna's first birthday.

It's a small family show but one dedicated to keeping animals in the circus, hence the notice below, which I also found on their Facebook page. Perhaps it's one all circus owners, bloggers and fans should display and tweet?

Agree? Blog, Facebook or tweet it.

Princess Stephanie of Monaco launches 39th International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo

Princess Stephanie of Monaco (immediate left of the elephant)
launches the 39th International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo.

As the 39th International Circus Festival opens in Monte Carlo, it's good to see the Daily Mail running a big picture spread on circus patron Princess Stephanie's appearance at the launch. Click here to see the pictures of her and the elephant, plus a video interview with the Princess.

Will we ever see the festival, the circus equivalent of the Olympics, televised in the UK, as it is in around 30 other countries? Maybe not while the event champions traditional circus with animals. But perhaps the Mail's picture spread of Princess Stephanie feeding and petting the elephant will help change opinions.

January 17 update: Click here for more pics of Princess Stephanie and her daughter attending opening night in celebrity glossy Hello magazine.

To celebrate the 39th International Circus Festival, click here for 10 Circus Facts!

Cirque Bijou January 2015

Opening the new Cirque Bijou calendar, we find this fabulous picture of a wire-walker high amid the masts and rigging of the SS Great Britain - just one of many projects organised by the Bristol-based company with the small name and penchant for big outdoor events.

For more on Britain's leading circus show-maker, click here.

Raising a glass to 20 years of the Circus of Horrors

Gerry Cottle: "It's not a rock'n'roll show..."

It was good to catch up with Dr Haze, yesterday, for a forthcoming article on 20 years of the Circus of Horrors. I first spoke to Haze when I wrote a chapter on the Horrors in Circus Mania. The show's Hannibal Helmurto also provided a graphic step-by-step guide to swallowing swords.

Haze also came to the book launch of Circus Mania at Circus Space as it then was (now the National Centre for Circus Arts) and posed for the above photo with me (centre) and Horrors co-founder Gerry Cottle (left).

Also in Circus Mania are behind-the-scenes visits and interviews with the stars of the Great British Circus, Great Yarmouth Hippodrome, Circus Mondao, BBC sitcom Big Top, Zippos, the Chinese State Circus and other shows on Britain's diverse circus scene.

The Mail on Sunday called it "A brilliant account of a vanishing art form." Click here to read the 5-star customer reviews on Amazon.